Friday, November 30, 2007

Another recipe by Donna Hay – from her magazine, issue #35, to be more specific.

I’m a huge fan of hers and those of you who have been around my blog for a while already know that – Joey and I go hand in hand in our love for Donna’s recipes! :)

I tried goat’s cheese for the first time while on vacation last September and can’t imagine how I had lived without it till then. I tried it on salads, quiche, sandwiches, pasta… And love everything. “Gotta start using it in my cooking”, I thought.

Joao brought it from the grocery store one day – I didn’t even know they had started selling it there – and I knew exactly where to look for a good recipe: Donna’s books and magazines.

What a delicious salad! I know that doesn’t sound much modest, but this is one of the best dishes I have ever cooked. The cheese was so good after the shallow-frying process: crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside. The tomato + basil combination is always a winner and the dressing worked perfectly with all the ingredients – I was amazed by how great everything was together.

I don’t like to repeat recipes – there are so many new things to be tried, right? – but this is a salad I can see myself eating again, and again, and again…

This is my entry for the Weekend Herb Blogging, this time hosted by Simona, from Briciole.

To make the balsamic dressing, place the olive oil, vinegar and sugar in a bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.

Place the flour and breadcrumbs on separate plates. Press the goat’s cheese slices into the flour, dip in the egg and press into the breadcrumbs. Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over high heat. Cook the cheese for 1-2 minutes each side or until golden and crispy. Divide the cheese, tomatoes, basil and rocket between plates and drizzle over the balsamic dressing.

I agree with Lydia: Welcome to the wonderful world of goat cheese, Patricia! The cheese processing in my part of Sweden is often based on goat’s milk. But goat cheese is very expensive compared to other cheeses. Nothing you can afford to eat every day.

Yum! Fried goat cheese! Yum! I will SO have to do that. I love just about anything crispy on the outside, gooey inside. I'm the say way, I never make the exact same thing, the exact same way twice. It's always at least a little different. I use goat cheese in my quiches too. It keeps the egg nice and moist, so they are fully cooked, but tender. I will definitely have to do this with goat cheese. Thanks for the inspiration!